Middle East

Tanker Hit by 'Unknown Projectiles' off UAE Coast: UK Maritime Agency

This is Beirut 04:35 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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A tanker was hit by unidentified projectiles off the coast of the United Arab Emirates, a British maritime agency reported Monday, as the United States said it would escort ships through the blocked Strait of Hormuz. "A tanker has reported being hit by unknown projectiles," the United Kingdom Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) said, ...

Israel Expands Air Power with F-35I and F-15IA Deal Following Lessons from Iran Conflict

This is Beirut 03/05 23:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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Israel has approved the acquisition of two additional fighter jet squadrons from the United States. The deal includes a fourth squadron of F-35I stealth fighters and a second squadron of F-15IA strike aircraft, both supplied by U.S. defense manufacturers Lockheed Martin and Boeing. The announcement, made by the Israeli Ministry of Defense, ...

U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent: “We Are Strangling the Regime”

This is Beirut 03/05 19:20 - Reading : 1 minute(s)

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U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent stated on Sunday that Washington has intensified its crackdown on all entities attempting to financially support Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). He stressed that the United States is “strangling the Iranian regime” economically, claiming that Tehran is now struggling to pay its ...

ExclusiveArab Christians in Israel Invite Lebanese to Holy Sites, Call for Peace

Selena Ryan 03/05 18:10 - Reading : less than a minute

Israel

Across Haifa, Bethlehem, and Nazareth, Christians describe unrestricted worship, extend invitations to Lebanese visitors, and voice hopes for lasting peace between the two countries.

Funeral Gunfire Sparks Tensions Between Army and Hezbollah Supporters

This is Beirut 03/05 17:55 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Tensions flared in Beirut’s southern suburbs on Sunday as units of the Lebanese Armed Forces deployed during a funeral procession for four individuals killed in recent violence, sparking friction with supporters of Hezbollah and highlighting the limits of state authority in the area. According to eyewitnesses and local media, the situation ...

Netanyahu Warns Israel Can Strike Anywhere in Iranian Airspace

This is Beirut 03/05 15:15 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Sunday in a recorded speech that Israel is capable of striking “anywhere in Iranian airspace" in a renewed warning to Tehran as indirect negotiations between Iran and the United States continue through Pakistani mediation. Netanyahu emphasized that Israeli pilots are “ready” to ...

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Warns U.S., Sets Deadline to Lift Naval Blockade

This is Beirut 03/05 14:30 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) intelligence arm issued a series of new warnings on Sunday, saying Tehran has given Washington a deadline to lift its naval blockade on Iranian ports, as tensions escalate alongside fragile diplomatic efforts. The IRGC said on Sunday that Iran had granted the Pentagon a “final ...

Trump Says U.S. Not Likely to Accept New Iran Peace Proposal

This is Beirut 03/05 09:40 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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U.S. President Donald Trump said Saturday he would review a new Iranian peace proposal but cast doubt over its prospects as he left open the possibility of future attacks on Iran. Negotiations between the two countries have been deadlocked since a ceasefire came into effect on April 8, with one round of peace talks to end the more than two-month ...

'Angry Birds'-Style Video Caricaturing Hezbollah Draws Rebuke

This is Beirut 03/05 05:30 - Reading : 3 minute(s)

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A video published by a Lebanese TV outlet caricaturing Hezbollah's leaders and fighters as characters from the "Angry Birds" mobile phone games drew a rebuke from the group, which called the clip "offensive" on Saturday. On social media, Hezbollah's supporters condemned what they considered the ridiculing of leader ...

Syria Dismantles Lebanon-Linked Captagon Smuggling Network

This is Beirut 02/05 22:35 - Reading : less than a minute

Lebanon

A major shipment of nearly one million Captagon pills originating from Lebanon was intercepted in Syria’s border region of Rankous, where authorities say they dismantled a cross-border smuggling network moving narcotics through Syria toward neighboring countries. According to a statement from the Syrian Ministry of Interior, the ...

Iran Executes Two Men Convicted of Spying for Israel: Judiciary

This is Beirut 02/05 11:20 - Reading : 2 minute(s)

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Iran hanged two men on Saturday convicted of spying for Israel, the judiciary said, the latest in a string of executions in recent weeks. "Yaghoub Karimpour and Nasser Bekrzadeh were hanged for the crime of intelligence cooperation and espionage in favour of the Zionist regime," the judiciary's Mizan Online website said. It was not ...

Iran Military Official Says Renewed War with U.S. 'Likely'

This is Beirut 02/05 11:10 - Reading : 4 minute(s)

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A senior Iranian military officer said on Saturday that renewed fighting between the US and Iran was "likely", hours after President Donald Trump said he was "not satisfied" with a new Iranian negotiating proposal. Iran delivered the draft to mediator Pakistan on Thursday evening, state media reported without detailing its ...